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Robert Harrison spoke to transportation leaders on the Panama Canal expansion at the recent Seventh Annual TxDOT Transportation Forum in San Antonio, Texas. Harrison is the Deputy Director of the Center for Transportation Research (CTR) at The University of Texas at Austin.

“The new locks on the Panama Canal will offer shippers in Texas and regional customers using Texas deep water ports enhanced service and lower costs to Asian markets, particularly for the bulk non-containerized exports which have made Texas the number one exporting state in the U.S.,” Harrison said. CTR brought Rudolfo Sabonge, the Vice President of Market Research and Analysis of the Panama Canal Authority, to give a presentation on the Panama Canal expansion to TxDOT at the CTR 2011 Annual Symposium. Sabonge was part of the team that was responsible for the oversight of the expansion.

The TxDOT Transportation Forum, usually held in Austin, set an attendance record this year with more than 1,400 researchers and transportation management professionals. The event is hosted annually by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), Texas Good Roads Transportation Association, Associated General Contractors of Texas, and the Texas Transportation Institute.

TxDOT’s new Executive Director Phil Wilson was the kick-off speaker for the two-day session. The keynote addresses were given by Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and U.S. Senator John Cornyn.

“It’s easy to get people excited about transportation challenges, but it’s much less common to see record attendance at an event dedicated to transportation solutions,” Wilson said. “The growth of the 2012 Transportation Forum shows just how serious Texas communities are about taking action to advance mobility in our state.”

Youtube of Rudolfo Sabonge, the Vice President of Market Research and Analysis of the Panama Canal Authority, presentation on the Panama Canal expansion, given at the Center for Transportation Research’s 2011 Annual Symposium.